A better Copy?
by WhiteWitchArcherAlchemist
Summary: I couldn't help but stare. I couldn't believe it. No, she couldn't be. . . ! Suddenly she smirked, and I knew. I knew that Argost had done it. He made a perfect copy. I'd seen that smirk. Every morning in the bathroom mirror . . .
1. Zaphrina? What?

**This Idea popped into my head one day not too long ago, and it's been bugging me for a while now. I've finally gotten around to writing it. ^^0**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Secret Saturdays. Only Zaphrina, but I prefer to call her Zephy. **

**Hint: */...\* Fiskerton talking. I'm not even gonna try to write out watever the hell he sayes. -_-0**

"Zak! Zak, wake up!"

I groaned and rolled over in my warm bed on the airship. The frantic pounding on my door didn't subside, however.

My mom's voice sliced through my sleepy haze with the next thing she said:

"It's Argost! We need to hurry!" She yelled through the door.

I shot upright and found myself face-planting into the floor.

"C-Coming, Mom!" I called, thrashing around to free myself of the sheets and blankets that had gotten tangled around my body.

I threw my pajamas off and pulled on my usual orange shirt with black sleeves and tan pants. Pulling on my sneakers as I ran from the room.

Fiskerton and I met on the way to the main room and he lifted me up onto his shoulders. He carried me into the room faster with his long legs and skid to a stop to prevent running into my dad. He looked up at us.

"Good, you boys are here."

He said, and looked back to the screen.

"What's Argost doing this time?" I asked, trying to stifle a yawn.

"We don't know, but he's been spotted in Trenton, New Jersey." Mom said with a frown.

"Trenton?" I repeated. "What's he doing there?"

"We don't know, Zak." Dad remarked, imitating Mom's expression.

My parents, Doc and Drew Saturday, were both scientists trying to figure out the location of Ker, a legendary cryptid.

I've been helping them for about a month now. Fisk looked down at me.

*/Are you alright?\* He asked.

I nodded, rubbing my forehead. Mom and Dad took their places on the airship's cockpit seats.

Mom typed something into the control panel, and I grabbed the bar in front of me so I wouldn't fall over when the Airship changed directions.

I sat down in my own seat and yawned. Soon, I was asleep again.

---

"Zak! Wake up! We're here!"

Once again, I was jolted out of my peaceful darkness by the sound of one of my parents' voices.

Dad was hovering over my face when I opened my eyes.

"Wassa meed, Dad?" I slurred, sitting up.

"We're here, Zak!" He said again, and disappeared from my vision.

I groaned, but sat up none the less, rubbing the grit from my eyes.

Suddenly I was lifted out of the chair and planted down on someones shoulder.

"Fisk!" I cried, clinging to my adopted brother's fir. Fiskerton snickered, and held my legs as he ran out the door.

Fiskerton, actually, was a cryptid himself. He was sort of a cross between a cat and a gorilla.

On the way out he looked up at me worriedly.

*/Are you sure you're alright? You look pretty out of it. . .\* He trailed off and I frowned.

"I told you, Fisk, I'm fine." I said in slight annoyance.

He huffed, and I could tell he didn't believe me. I didn't know why, but I was feeling weird ever since Mom told me where Argost was.

And if there was one thing my parents have taught me, it was to trust my instincts.

Fisk ran down the ramp onto the ground and looked around. We were in the middle of what looked like a bridge, and if my geography was right, we were above the Delaware river.

We could both see Argost and Moonya at the other end. Argost was laughing.

"Greetings, Saturdays," He called to us, looking positively smug.

Mom and Dad both got into fighting stances.

Fisk set me down and I followed their example.

"Oh, no no, Saturdays. I do not wish to fight." He drawled, with a disgusting smirk on his white face.

I frowned. Mom scowled.

"What do you want then?" Dad growled.

Argost laughed.

"Nothing to do with you, dear Doc Saturday." He said. His gaze traveled from Dad, to Mom, then finally landed on me.

I gulped.

"Young Zak Saturday." Argost called to me.

"What?" I called back, putting a little growl into my voice like Dad taught me to. Argost's smirk widened some, and it made me sick.

"I have a proposition for you."

Dad gave a little growl. Mom had a slightly worried face.

"What kind of proposition?" My voice still had the slight growl. It was supposed to be intimidating. . .

"Allow me to collect a small sample of your blood."

There was silence for about two whole minutes.

Dad suddenly bent forward, a snarl ripping out of his throat.

"_No._" Mom growled firmly, moving in front of me a little. Motherly instincts kicking in full-force.

Even Fisk had moved in front of me protecively. He glared at Argost and Moonya with cold red eyes.

I frowned. My blood? What did he want with my blood? What could he do with it, feed a vampire?

I voiced the second question.

Dad had a fierce expression. "There are many things he could do with your blood, Zak." He said tightly.

"Like what?"

"Haven't you read science fiction books?" He asked flatly.

I thought about that for a few seconds.

Then, I almost fell backwards. "He wants to clone me?!?!" I exclaimed in shock.

Mom and Dad both sweat dropped.

I noticed Argost's face falter slightly. But I didn't think about this too much.

"Don't be ridiculous, Zak." Dad said exasperatedly. (Is that even a word?) "He wants to try and analyze your powers using your molecular structure."

*/DNA.\* Fisk clarified to my confused face.

I blinked. "Oh."

Argost sighed. "Aw, well. I really hoped I wouldn't have to do this by force." His face fell into a fake disdained expression.

He pulled out a small knife.

As soon as my parents saw it, they both cried out and lunged, their weapons activating.

They attacked Argost, and Moonya slipped around them. I held up my claw threateningly, but what I didn't expect to feel was a sharp pain in the side of my neck.

Everything faded to nothing.

But before I fell into oblivion, a heard a soft girl's voice say to me.

"Wait for me, Zak. I'm on my way."

---

Ohhhhh, My aching everything.

I opened my eyes with difficulty. They felt like lead.

Something sharply tugged at my hair, and I cried out.

"ow, OW _OW!_" I hissed, looking down to see Argost hanging off the side of the bridge with a fist-full of my hair.

How the hell this came to be, I'll never know, but the only thing I could think about was the searing pain in my scalp.

"Hey, let me go!" I yelled, trying to get my head out of the creepy man's grip.

Argost suddenly smirked and gave a sharp tug, causing me to cry out as a handful of my hair was ripped out of my head.

Dad grabbed my shoulder to keep me from falling into the river as well.

"Zak!" Mom yelled, running over to us.

She threw her arms around me, and I think I heard my back crack.

She pulled back and looked me over. "Are you alright? Any cuts? Bruises? Broken bones?"

I laughed. "No, Mom. Besides an aching head, I'm fine."

Mom still looked concerned, and she shared a look with Dad.

I blinked.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

Mom and Dad both looked very uneasy.

"We don't know," They both said.

That didn't help me at all.

---

Argost stood in a large laboratory, laughing.

"Tell me, Moonya, do you know what this means?" He held up a test tube with a few strands of black and white hair inside it.

"I do not understand, master." Moonya said with a small frown. "Did we not need the Saturday boy's blood for this to be successful?"

Argost smirked. "The blood would have made this easier, but we can still complete this task. It will simply,"

He placed the test tube on a small holder on the table. He bent down to look at it.

"The process will simply take, slightly, longer. . . "

Argost poured a green liquid into the tube, and replaced the top. He straitened up and smirked.

"Now, get the camera ready. It is time for my show."

**~Time skip: About two and a half months~**

Zak POV

I peaked around the corner. The dark hallway seemed to stretch on forever. But more importantly, it was empty.

I looked back around and waved to Fisk and Kamodo.

The two followed me into the hall, Fisk grumbling under his breath.

*/Why do we keep doing this? you _know_ your father will kill you if he catches us.\*

I laughed. "That just makes it more fun." I said slyly with a smirk.

He groaned, and we both followed Kamodo into the main room.

I flopped down on the chair and picked up the remote. Kamodo dropped a bowl of popcorn into my lap, and I stared at it.

Fisk and I shared a look.

"Did you know he could work the microwave?" I asked as the kamodo dragon started to eat the popcorn.

Fisk shrugged.

I rolled my eyes and flipped on the TV, turning down the volume so I could hear it, but the noise wouldn't wake my parents.

The intro to Weird World came up, and I cheered. (Quietly, mind you)

Argost came onto the screen, looking very smug about something.

"Oh, hello there." He said into the camera. "So nice of you to join me tonight on this episode of Weird World."

He waved a hand to the many things in his cave laboratory. "I have shown you many things on this show over the years, but I think this will pleasantly surprise you the most."

Argost looked to a spot behind the camera.

"Please, help me to introduce my new assistant. Be careful not to scare her, she's a little shy."

Then, a girl about my age walked into the shot. She turned to the camera and waved, an indifferent expression on her face.

But that wasn't the only the reason I was staring.

She had short choppy black hair, white bangs, and an orange shirt with black jeans.

"Welcome, Zaphrina Saturday." He said, putting an arm around the girl.

She waved boredly at the camera.

I dropped the remote. That girl. . . the one on Argost's show. . .

She looked like my exact replica.

Fisk and Kamodo stared.

I didn't know what to do. The girl- Zaphrina- she was looking at the camera as Argost talked.

Staring.

Right.

At.

Me.

I did the only thing I could think of in this situation.

I screamed.

"_MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!_"

**Please tell me if you liked it and want me to continue. Reveiw! ^^**


	2. Memory mine?

**Yay! Chapter two! That was fast! XD I couldn't stop writing this! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Secret Saturdays. Only Zephy.**

**Half of this is in Zak's POV, the other is in Zeph's. Now onto the story!**

I was (for lack of a better word) having an all-out spaz-attack.

I ran around the airship main room, blabbering about completely nothing. I tugged at my black and white hair, trying to make sence of what the hell I just saw.

That was the way Mom and Dad found me when they both ran in.

They stopped at the door, looking down in confusion.

"Mom! Dad! T-The girl! A-and TV! O-on it! And Me! Look like! She- Ahhhh!!"

I fell over the bowl of popcorn that Kamodo had made, face-planting once again into the metal floor.

"Uh, okay, Zak, sweetie, the only thing your father and I understood from that sentace was 'Mom' and 'Dad'." Mom said with a weird confused expression.

I sat back up and started blabbering again, but Fisk put his had over my mouth.

He pointed to the TV screen, where it was paused on the image of the girl.

There was silence.

Weird, I would have expected a little more feaking ou-

"What in the-?!"

"Oh my Go-!!"

Both of them stared at the girl, at me, then at the girl again.

I shoved Fisk's hand away from my face.

"You guys never told me I had a sister! And a twin sister at that!"

"You don't." They said in unison.

I blinked. "Then who is-?"

The question died in my throat when I realized they were both gone, no doubt to go try and figure out the hell Zaphrina was in the lab.

As if reading my thoughts (I swear he can do that sometimes!) Fiskerton placed me on his shoulders once again and hurried to the lab.

Once inside, he set me down and we watched as my parents fussed around like headless chickens.

I sweatdropped.

"Mom, do you think this would have anything to do with why Argost wanted my blood a few weeks ago?" Mom and Dad both froze in their tracks.

A thought struck me. Like a smack in the fa- oh no wait, Kamodo just hit me with his tail.

With a small glare toward the snickering lizerd, I turned back to my parents. "I think I was right." I stated, crossing my arms.

Mom and Dad both gaze me looks. "About what?" Dad asked.

"Argot wanted my blood to clone me. And he did."

"But he didn't get your blood, Zak." Dad frowned, looking over a screen of data.

"But he did get my hair."

Mom dropped the fire sword that she was fidjiting with. "Oh, god, Doc, He's right."

Dad looked stunned.

"But why would-"

"So that by using my clone, he could try and see if she had the same cryptid powers I do, and use them against us," I stated smartly. Clamly.

Then, I blinked.

"Holy shit I have a clone!!"

"Language!!"

*/Language!!\* Mom and Fisk scolded in unison.

---

"Zaphrina. Wake."

I opened my eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the blinding light above me. I lifted my hand, blocking it from my eyes.

"Hello, there, Zaphrina."

I turned my head to see two men standing before me, both had pasty faces, but the one guy was completely white.

The other, had a monocle and a mop of red hair.

I blinked. "Who are you? Where am I?" I looked down at myself while sitting up.

"My name is Argost." Said the white man with the blue cape. "This is my assistant Moonya."

The other man nodded his greeting, a man of few words, I see.

"Hello, Argost. Moonya. Where am I?"

I looked around. I was in a lab of some sort, the walls looked like stone. A cave, maybe? Who would need an underground laboratory?

I looked down at myself. I was wearing an orange tank-top with a black tee-shirt underneith. I had a pair of tan shorts on, and black sneekers.

"So. . . my name is Zaphrina?" I asked.

Argost nodded, a smile on his face. But to me, it looked more like he was trying to be kind even though what he had planned for me was far from it.

"If you prefer. But yes, your name at this point is Zaphrina Saturday."

I cocked my head to the side, letting the name roll off my tounge. "Zaphrina, huh?"

Then a thought poked at my brain, and I looked around.

"Where are my family? I have one, don't I?"

Argost got a sudden, paniced look, but it vanished instantly.

"Of course, dear Zaphrina. Moonya and myself."

I frowned. "That can be right. I don't remember you at all."

Argost and Moonya shared looks of serprise.

"Well, then what do you remeber?"

"I remember a woman. With white hair, and a dark-skinned man with black and white hair. Who are they?"

Argost was silent for a moment, then he smirked.

"Those people had tried to kidnap you, Zaphrina."

"Kidnap me?" I repeated with a frown.

Argost nodded.

"They kidnapped your brother, Zak, to use his specal abillities for their own gain."

"My brother? They took my brother?!"

Argost nodded again, smirk still in place.

I growled and jumped off the table.

"Where are they? I'm going to take him back."

Argost and Moonya traded smirks.

Argost put his arm around my shoulder and lead me out of the room.

"Allow me to personally escort you there, my dear. From there, you may rescue your brother from their evil clutches."

In my mind, I got an image of a boy my height, with black hair and spiky white bangs. He closed his eyes and smiled warmly at me.

Little did I know, that the boy I saw, was actually looking in a mirror.

(A/N: I was tempted to just end it here, but you guys got off easy. XD)

---

I stared boredly out the window of the rocket thing as we flew to where ever those people where keeping my brother, Zak.

Moonya was flying, while Argost was no where to be found.

But that was fine with me, the man creeped me out.

I closed my eyes and leaned against the glass.

_"Mommy! Mommy!" I was running through a hallway, trying to find someone while holding a box under my arm._

_I went inside of a room, and found the white-haired woman from before._

_I shyly held up the box._

_"H-happy birthday, mommy." I stammered. She smiled._

_"Thank you sweetie. What do we have here?"_

_She pulled the paper off the box and opened it._

_Inside, was a small neclace I had made myself. She pulled it out and held it up to the light. "It's beautiful, sweetie!" She exclamed, getting down on her knees._

_"Do me a favor and put it on?"_

_I nodded and took the necklace from her hands and brushed away her snowy hair. I cliped the clasp together and she stood back up._

_"Thank you, baby. It's beautiful, I love it."_

_"Zak! Zak!" I heard a man's voice call._

_"It's time for training, sweetie. Go help your brother, alright?"_

_I nodded happily, and ran off down the hall._

_I noticed someone behind a glass window, spiky white bangs. _Zak!

_Someone called his name again, and we both looked away._

_"Coming!" We called in unison, and continued down the hall._

I blinked and shook my head.

The white haired woman. . . I'd called her mommy. . .

Did those people trick me and Zak into thinking they were our parents? Ohh, my head hurts from thinking to hard.

Argost walked inside the cockpit with a smirk.

It sent a shiver down my spine.

"We are almost there, Zaphrina."

I nodded once, and looked back out the window.

"Wait for me, Zak." I wispered under my breath. "I'm on my way."

**What was that Zaphrina saw? Was it her own memory? Or better yet, how does she even know that memory is her in the first place?**

**What are the Saturdays gonna do when they meet her and she demands that they release her brother?**

**Oh boy, things are gonna get weird.**


	3. Dogmonsters and pale hospital rooms

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Secret Saturdays. Only Zaphrina.**

A dark thunder cloud rumbled overhead as Argost landed the airship.

I followed the men outside and looked around in confusion.

There was a tall, Japanese-looking castle before us, and Argost looked very happy- no, wait. Let me correct myself, _smug_- about something.

He lead me and Moonya inside the run-down building, maneuvering the hallways with ease.

My boots crunched the snow where the ceiling had rotten and fallen in. I hugged myself.

"Where are we?" I asked, my breath coming out in small puffs of mist.

Argost didn't look back at me when he spoke. "We have come here for something of great importance, dear Zaphrina."

I frowned, waiting. But he didn't continue.

Cold air blew in through a broken window, causing goose-bumps to show up all over my arms. I shivered.

"C-couldn't yo-you have g-gotten me a-a coat-t-t?"

If Moonya or Argost had heard me, they sure didn't show it.

"A-and I-I th-thought we were gon-gonna save Z-. . . Zak?"

"All in due time, Dear Zaphrina." Argost said, sounding slightly annoyed.

My frown deepened into a scowl. "Yes, but _when?!_" I stressed. I wanted to see my brother. I shifted through my memories, pulling up random things.

Like a sort of gorilla-cat thing carrying me in it's shoulders,

Or a giant lizard wrestling with me on the floor,

A dinosaur bird thing carrying me on it's back as it flew. . .

"What did you mean by abilities?"

Argost turned to look over his shoulder at me with narrowed eyes.

"All questions are answered with patience, Zaphrina." He said stiffly, turning around.

I scoffed. "What, no 'Dear' before my name?" I asked boldly.

A sudden pain in the side of my face made my head snap to the side.

"You will be silent until spoken to." Argost said firmly, turning away with a swish of his blue cape. Without a single backwards glance, Moonya followed.

A hand reached up to gently cup my cheek where a dark bruise was starting to form.

Moving on wobbily legs, I slowly started after the men as if in a daze.

He'd hit me. . . why?

In not one of my memories did those scientists hit me. . . but Argost said they took my brother. . .

Argost also said that we'd go save Zak. But then why were we in the middle of Japan?

Nothing made sense.

I followed them through the hallways silently. Argost lead us down a hallway, then stopped at a seemingly dead end.

I would have said something snippy, but I held my tongue. Argost was starting to scare me.

He looked at the wall intently, and started to fiddle with something. I watched in stunned silence as the wall fell away and revealed a long, dark tunnel.

Moonya pushed me ahead of them. I gulped, but started walking.

Everything was dark and cold, like I'd walked into a tomb. I held myself tightly, shivering violently.

The tunnel continued down. Down, down, down.

Water dripped from somewhere near me, but I didn't lift my eyes off the path ahead.

Finally, we stopped in a wide cave with flickering torches all around. I stopped at the entrance, while Argost and Moonya continued on ahead.

Argost pulled what looked like a sword in a sheath.

"Inu Youkai, step away from the path," He mumbled. "I hold the tetsaiga, fang on the dog demon! Open the gate for me, release the beast!"

There was silence through the cave. Then, the floor began to shake.

I fell back, trying to regain my footing before I hit the ground.

"Zaphrina!" Argost hissed. "Come!"

Obediently, I walked toward them. Argost moved back behind me as the cave began to shake. My knees felt weak, and it was all I could do to keep from screaming. Argost handed me the sword and sheath. I held it with shaking hands.

"What a-am I g-going to do?" I asked softly.

"You, my dear Zaphrina, are going to tame this beast here," Argost said with a creepy smirk. I stared at him, speechless.

The cave trembled violently again, then, the whole wall crumbled to the ground. I took a step back, but Argost grabbed my shoulder roughly and shoved me forward.

A tall form was slowly coming toward us through the shadows. It looked to me like a huge sort of dog.

Piercing red eyes stared down at me, and I stood there frozen.

"ZAPHRINA! TAME IT!!" Argost snapped.

I took a breath and held up my hand. "E-easy, boy!" I said softly, "You don't wanna hurt us-"

The monster let out an ear-splitting roar, slamming it's tail into the cave wall.

I screamed. Moonya grabbed my arm from behind and started to drag me out of the cave. Soon, we were back in the hallway of the Japanese castle. We followed Argost out back into the open, right as the monster destroyed the part of the castle it was imprisoned under.

I was finally able to get a good look at it. It had white/silver fur, with purple markings under it's eyes. The deep blood red eyes sat on either side of a blue crescent moon.

Another roar came from the monster's mouth. It ripped through what was left of the castle.

Moonya and Argost ran for the airship.

I wasn't so lucky.

A falling beam smashed into the back of my head. I fell face-first into the snow, as more falling building and ice fell on top of my unconscious body. . .

---

"Oh, god, what happened here?"

"The whole site just completely collapsed!"

"Hey! Over here! One of the dogs found something!"

"Oh god, it's a kid! Someone call a medic!"

"Hey, hey kid, can you hear me?"

I opened my eyes slowly.

"Zak?"

And all was black again.

---

The neck time I woke up, there was a blinding light above me. I blinked blearily, and reached up to cover my eyes. However, my arm felt a resistance halfway to it's destination.

I looked over. Wires and tubes ran all along my arm, one directing a fluid into my bloodstream.

The door opened, and a tall brunette woman walked inside. "Well, hello there. I see you're awake," She walked over to the side of my bed with all the machines and screens that whirred and beeped on and off constantly. Everything in the room was white. The bed, the walls, the ceiling, the floor. The only spots of color was the door and the woman's tan skin.

Even my own skin looked pale enough to be white.

"Where am I?" I asked softly. The woman looked away from the monitor with the line that spiked and beeped. She sat down beside me on the bed. "You're in the hospital, sweetie. Do you remember what happened to you?"

I slowly shook my head, doing a quick glance over of the room. My nurse sighed.

"They found you half buried under a pile of snow and debris. You kept slipping in and out of consciousness. But one thing we did figure out was that you kept asking for one person, a Zak. Ring any bells?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, he's my brother."

The woman smiled softly. "Do you want us to call you're family, sweetie?"

I shook my head. "I can't. . . I dunno where. . . I don't know their. . ."

The nurse put a hand over my mouth.

"Shh-sh-shh! You get some sleep alright? We can find them for you in the morning, alright?"

I nodded slowly, rolling over onto my side. "'Kay,"

The nurse walked toward the door. "If you need anything, just call for Ami."

I nodded again, and the lights clicked off.

---

"Just this morning in downtown Tokyo, a state-park castle was completely destroyed overnight. The only recorded witnesses are refusing to tell what had happened, and the other is now hospitalized for hypothermia and and a slight concussion. She seems to have no idea where her family is or what she was doing on the sight before the event. Here is her picture:"

Zak Saturday's milk and cereal splattered out of his mouth and back into the bowl as a picture of an unconscious Zaphrina was suddenly shown on the screen. The plastic reporter stood off to the side as she continued to tell the story.

"If you have any information on this girl, please contact the Tokyo International Children's Hospital at the following number."

A phone number scrolled across the bottom of the screen. Drew Saturday, sitting across from her son, reached across the table for a pencil and paper.

Zak watched her scribble the number down in silence. "Are we gonna go to Tokyo?" He asked.

Drew nodded. "We need to find out just who this Zaphrina girl is. Plus, I can't just leave that girl all alone in the hospital."

Zak nodded wordlessly. But the boy still caught the words muttered under his mother's breath: "Not when she looks so much like you. . ."

The young Saturday boy just turned and walked off to get dressed.

**Before any of you say anything, YES, that was an Inuyasha reference. There is a high chance that Sessomaru or Inutaisho (Whichever you prefer) will not show up again in future chapters. Anyway, Peace! ^^**

**PS: Reveiw, and I'll give you a cookie shaped like Fiskerton. **


	4. Home? Reeeaaally?

**HEEEEYYY ALLL! xD I bet you thought I was dead, nya? Well, Boy do I gots news for you! I'm not! Whoo Hooo!**

***Silence . . . ***

**Cheer if you want to live.**

***Audience cheers like no tomorrow*Well, anyhoo, now that summer vacation is here, I just might be able to update a little more frequently. Sorry I haven't been around, but my muse unfortunately ran out on me. But never fear, I ave caught him tied him up and thrown him in a closet where he can't escape again. ^^0 Now, Onward to Chapter four and thank you for reading through my babbling. **

**

* * *

**"Excuse me," I said, walking up to the front desk with Mom on my left, Dad on my right. "But I'm looking for Zaphrina. What room is she in?"

The woman behind the desk didn't look up from her magazine. She chewed and popped her gum obnoxiously, and made no move to show that she'd even heard me.

"Ah-hem!" I cleared my throat, and she glanced up at me. The woman made a clicking noise with her tongue.

"That's a bad girl, missy." She said, turning back to her magazine. "That's the third time you ran outta your room."

"Excuse me?" I said incredulously. She took another look at me, then set down the magazine. "Oh, and who might you be, hun?" She asked, still popping her gum.

"My name is Solomon Saturday," Dad said. "We're here for my _daughter,_ Zaphrina."

The woman turned to me. "You her brother?"

I nodded.

"Name?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh. . . Zak." I said uncertainly.

She nodded and leaned back in her seat. "Let's see. Zaphrina, Zaphrina, here we go," The woman flipped through a binder with a stack of Manila folders clipped inside.

"She's in room 215. Be quite when you enter, she _should_ be sleeping."

Mom nodded and put a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you," She pushed me down the hall to an elevator. Dad pushed the second floor button, and an awkward silence fell over us.

_Do-doo-dee-dum, Dum-de-dee dum, Do-doo-dee-dum. . ._

I couldn't help the small glare I fixed on the small speaker in the ceiling of the elevator, wishing I could blast the thing with my claw, hidden under my shirt.

But I don't think mom would like that.

After what seemed to be a drawn out period of time, the metal box came to a stop and the doors slid open.

Mom was out the door and down the hall in a heart beat, and Dad wasn't far behind. I followed at a slower pace, making sure to count the steps as I took them.

What was I supposed to say when I saw this girl? "Hi, My name is Zak. An evil crazy scientist used my hair to clone me and ended up with you. Hope that we can be friends!"?

God, I wanted to shoot myself for even thinking that.

I got to the lucky number 42 when I reached the door marked 215. Mom and Dad stood side by side in front of the closed door, waiting for something.

However, neither of them moved when I got there.

"D-Doc," Mom stuttered. "What will we say to her when we get inside?"

Dad didn't answer, just stared at the door. I sighed.

"Mom, why don't you wait out here, while I talk to her? Maybe it'll be easier for her to understand if I explain it in English, instead of science-mumbo-jumbo."

Mom nodded, and slumped into a plastic chair outside the door. Dad stood next to her, a blank expression on his face.

I took a deep breath, and opened the door. . .

(Zephy POV)

I hate hospitals.

Hate hate hate hate hate _hate_ them.

I mother _fucking_ hate hospitals.

The smell of antiseptic kept burning my nose and irritating my throat. Not to mention the _fucking _nurses wouldn't leave me the _fuck _alone.

Needless to say, it turns out that my body had a rather. . . unique . . . reaction to the medication.

So when the door opened, I grabbed my book and hurled it at the door.

"Leave me the FUCK alone, dammit! No more meds!" I screamed.

There was a sick THWAP!, then a rather loud thud.

"Hey! What was that for?" A voice yelled.

A different voice.

A different young voice.

A different young _boy's_ voice.

I slowly sat up in my bed, wincing at the stinging in my abdomen covered in white gauze. The boy stood up, rubbing his head with a look of clear annoyance on his face.

His black unruly hair stood up every which way, and the white bangs stood out in sharp contrast.

My throat closed, and I couldn't breath.

"Zak," I whispered softly.

(Zak again)

I rubbed the small bruise forming on my forehead, glaring at the girl in the hospital bed.

But the angry look faded after a few minutes as I looked her over.

She was pale, a few more shades peachier than the white bed sheets. Her hair stuck up in random directions, like mine did in the morning.

She was staring at me.

I could tell she was freaked out, I mean, a boy looking like your exact replica walks into your room unannounced? I don't know about you, but I'd be freaked.

"Zak," She wispered as I sat down. Her dark eyes followed my every move cautiously. I smiled at her in my best 'Don't-stare-at-me-like-that-I-don't-know-what-I'm-doing-either' fashion.

"Hey there, err, Zaphrina, right?"

Zaphrina nodded her head slowly. "Yeah. That's me." She was silent for a second. "That woman, outside, is she my-" Her voice broke off and she turned her gaze back down to her hands. I scooted closer to her on the edge of the chair.

"She's my- . . . our. . . mom."

Zaphrina didn't look up from her hands. "And the man in your . . . our . . . dad?"

At my nod of conformation, she slumped backwards in the hospital bed. She turned her dark gaze toward the ceiling for a moment, then looked back to me.

"Who's Fiskerton?" She asked so suddenly it caught me off guard.

"Hu- wha?" I stuttered.

"Fiskerton," Zaphrina repeated in a calm and collected tone. But I could see she really felt like jumping up and down pulling her hair in frustration. I should know. I've been there and done all that. "Like, a giant sort of cat-monkey-gorrilla thing."

"How do _you_ know _Fiskerton!_" I exclaimed.

Zaphrina finally looked at me, her gaze cold and blank. "I don't know. I just, well, _remember him_, I guess. Don't ask me how, I don't know myself. He isn't the only one I've seen. A pterodactyl, Zon. A giant lizard, Kamodo. A girl with bright green eyes, Wadi. And," She squinted her eyes as if looking at something in the room. "A fish boy? Oh! And another guy with an unruly red Mohawk. Uncle Doyle? Uncle? I have an uncle?"

She continued to ramble on and on about a million things that I should be the only person to know about, like the password to the secret passage to my bedroom at home, the fact that she felt a sudden craving to watch Weird World without even knowing what it was, and she _seemed to recall the time she was stuck in a lizard's body._

"And just who the hell is this Wadi chick anyway? I keep seeing her in my head and I don't know why and-"

"What?"

" . . . "

"Zaphrina?"

"I just wondered what it would be like to kiss that girl."

My face went a deep and dark scarlet. So she knew _that_ too.

Zaphrina sat up with a small wince, leaning forwards to clench her hands together.

"Do I really know these people? All this information? Is it really mine?"

She turned to me with an angry, but still scared and frustrated look.

"And why do I keep seeing you in a glass window?"

* * *

Two days later, Mom and Dad were checking Zaphrina out of the hospital.

Dad had his hand on her shoulder, and I could see how uncomfortable they both looked. "Dad," I said. "Why don't you let me take errr. . . Zephy out to the, um, car."

Zaphrina looked at me in confusion at the name, but smiled none the less when Dad nodded and I led her out the door.

"Thanks," She said when we were outside. "I was getting really sick of that place."

"Me too." I nodded, letting her follow me to a bench across the street.

We sat down together, and she started to mess with the hem of her shirt. I tilted my head to the side, taking in her profile.

We had the same height, eye color, hair colors, and I could see a small birthmark on her left arm.

I checked my own. I had it on the right.

The shapes of our faces and bodies were similar, as opposed to, y'know, her being a girl and all. Her fingers were slightly more slender, and her figure curvy where I was boxy. We had differences, thank god. So Argost wasn't able to make a completely perfect clone, huh?

"Zak? Why are you staring at me?"

I jolted, startled. Zaphrina was looking at me in confusion and a shread of concern, but not much. She frowned. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head, trying to clear it. "N-nothing."

Zaphrina nodded, dropping the subject. She continued to fiddle with a frayed edge if her tee-shirt nervously.

"How. . . long did that man have me?" She asked almost inaudibly.

I glanced at her from the courner of my eyes. "A few months, I guess." I said slowly.

"Did you. . . look for me?"

Her voice had gone a lot quieter than it first was. I turned to her fully, finding her eyes to be shadowed by her bangs.

"Yeah," I said uneasily. "O-of course we did, Zephy."

Zaphrina seemed to pause, contemplating the new name. "Zephy. . . huh?" She asked, trying the name and letting it roll of her tongue. "I like it," She said, grinning. "The way it sounds, Zephy."

"Zak! Zaphrina! Come on, kids!" Mom called. Zaphrina got up without a pause. I watched her from behind for a moment, then got up to follow her where my . .. our . . . parents were waiting.

Mom smiled at Zephy uneasily, but she didn't look up. My clone stuffed her hands into her pockets, keeping her head bowed as she followed us to the airship.

I sided up to Mom. "So, what are we going to do with her?"

She glanced at me, then back at Zephy. She sighed. "I dunno, kiddo. She doesn't really seem to trust us all that much, from what I can tell. Can you do me a favor and try and be civil to her?"

"Sure Mom," I said. Why would she think I'd do anything different?

* * *

Once we were all on board the airship, Mom offered to show Zaphrina somewhere she could go to rest. "We can stop by a mall or something," She was saying, opening the door to a room down the hall from mine. "To buy you some clothes. Would you like that?" Zephy didn't respond. She just nodded and 'Uh-huh'ed and 'Mm-hmm'ed when it seemed appropriate. "We can get you some things for your room, too. Bed sheets, posters, furniture. Oh, maybe a desk or something? What do you think? Are you hungry? Would you like something to drink? I'll go make some tea; what would you like for dinner I can make a pizza or-"

"Mom," I interupted before she could make Zephy dizzy. Mom paused, her mouth half open. She blinked a few times.

"R-right. Well, I'll let you, eh, get settled in then," She said distractedly. Mom ran her fingers through her snowy hair before nodding at Zaphrina. She ruffled my hair and after a moment's deliberation, kissed the top of Zephy's head. She walked off without a word after that.

I waved a hand in front of Zephy's face, only because she looked to not be breathing. "You okay?" I asked after getting her attention. (I even had to flick her nose before she even twitched. Am I like that?)

"What? Oh, yeah."

"You don't look like it."

Zephy scratched the side of her face, which had a large square bandage stuck to her cheek. "Eh, really, Zak, I'm fine . . . I just-"

"Not used to Mom's kisses?" I guessed. Zaphrina stared at me a moment before nodding.

"It's so weird . . . you three have all been so nice to me, but . . . after what Argost said, how can I trust-" She stopped mid-sentence, staring at me. "Zak? What- what is it?" Her voice was a bit uneasy. I relaxed, and a sting in my palms told (Screamed, more like) that I'd been digging my fingernails into them. I rubbed my hands.

"Zephy, you can't trust Argost. What did he tell you?" I scowled, not liking where this was going. Zaphrina shifted, rubbing the tops of her pale arms. She didn't look me in the eyes. I resisted the urge to grab her. "What did he tell you?" I repeated.

" . . . that isn't any of your business." She crossed her arms and looked away, letting her colorless bangs hide her eyes. I stared hard at her, but she wouldn't budge. Damn, I really have met my match. Ten minutes we stood in the hallway, just glaring at each other. I was determined to win, but Zephy was determined not to crack.

Fiskerton poked his head around the corner, mumbling and grumbling that dinner was ready. Zephy and I snapped our heads around sent him identical icy glares.

"We're busy!"

Fiskerton made an 'eep'-like noise before vanishing again.

I turned back to Zephy and she turned back to me. We stared hard at each other, heads pressed together. "Blink already," Zaphrina scowled in annoyance. I smirked.

"Think you're gonna loose?"

"As if."

"You look like you're getting tired."

"Just irritated."

"At what?"

"Your MOM!"

"My Mom is your Mom!"

"And she isn't getting any younger, kids! Neither is your food; getting colder the longer you two bicker!" Mom's voice came over the intercom scaring the crap out of both of us. We slumped over and panted, trying to calm our raging hearts. I pointed a her.

"We . . . finish this . . . later with a . . . game of Mario Cart . . . "

"You're . . . " Zephy straightened up. "On."

We grinned, coming out of our angry moods and making up in only the way siblings can. "C'mon, let's eat." I said, leading her away from the rather empty plain room to the kitchen were food was waiting.


End file.
